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    Wolff-Parkinson- White-Syndrome, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions
    Wolff-Parkinson- White-Syndrome, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions
    Wolff-Parkinson- White-Syndrome, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions
    Ebook149 pages2 hours

    Wolff-Parkinson- White-Syndrome, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions

    By Kenneth Kee

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    About this ebook

    Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome is a congenital heart disorder in which an additional electrical connection in the heart can cause episodes of rapid heart rate (tachycardia)
    WPW syndrome is one of the most frequent causes of fast heart rate disorders in infants and children.
    Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome is a heart disorder that induces the heart to beat abnormally fast for periods of time.
    It is a relatively frequent disorder, affecting between one and three in every 1,000 people.
    Many WPW cases are diagnosed in otherwise healthy adults aged between 20 and 40.
    Occasionally the extra electrical pathway will not cause any symptoms and may only be detected when an electrocardiogram (ECG) test is done for another disorder.
    It can be frightening for the patient to be told that he or she has a problem with the heart, but WPW syndrome normally is not serious.
    Many people will have no symptoms or only feel occasional, mild episodes of their fast heart rate.
    WPW syndrome is a congenital abnormal disorder which can result in supra-ventricular tachycardia (SVT) that makes use of an atrioventricular (AV) accessory tract.
    The additional pathway may also allow conduction during other supra-ventricular arrhythmias, such as atrial fibrillation or flutter.
    With treatment, the disorder can normally be entirely cured.
    Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome is the most frequent of the ventricular pre-excitation syndromes
    A person with this syndrome may have:
    1. Chest pain or chest tightness
    2. Dizziness
    3. Lightheadedness
    4. Fainting
    5. Palpitations
    If the patient has WPW syndrome, the patient will feel events where the heart suddenly starts racing, before stopping or slowing down suddenly.
    A physical examination done during a tachycardia episode will reveal a heart rate faster than 100 beats per minute.
    The normal heart rate is 60 to 100 beats per minute in adults, and under 150 beats per minute in newborns, infants, and small children.
    The disorder may be diagnosed with an ECG or with continual or person triggered ambulatory ECG monitoring, such as a Holter monitor.
    A procedure called an electrophysiologic study (EPS) is done using catheters placed in the heart.
    This test may help detect the site of the additional electrical pathway.
    Classic ECG findings of WPW syndrome are a short PR interval (smaller than 120 ms), a wide QRS complex of more than 120 ms with a slurred onset producing a delta wave in the early part of QRS and secondary ST-T wave alterations
    Asymptomatic patients may just require periodic assessment.
    The main types of treatment are drug therapy, radiofrequency (RF) ablation and surgical ablation.
    Radiofrequency ablation is the first-line treatment for symptomatic WPW syndrome.
    It has substituted surgical treatment and most drug treatments.
    Medicines, mainly anti-arrhythmic drugs such as procainamide or amiodarone, may be given to control or stop a rapid heartbeat.
    If the heart rate does not return to normal with medical treatment, the doctors may make use of a form of treatment called cardioversion (electrical shock).
    The long-term treatment for WPW syndrome is very often catheter RF ablation.
    This intervention needs inserting a tube (catheter) into a vein through a small incision near the groin up to the heart area.
    When the tip enters the heart, the small area that is causing the fast heart rate is obliterated using a special type of energy called radiofrequency or by freezing it (cryoablation).
    Open heart surgery to cauterize or freeze the additional pathway may also give a permanent cure for WPW syndrome.
    In most cases, this intervention is done only if the patient requires heart surgery for other reasons.

    TABLE OF CONTENT
    Introduction
    Chapter 1 Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome
    Chapter 2 Causes
    Chapter 3 Symptoms
    Chapter 4 Diagnosis
    Chapter 5 Treatment

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherKenneth Kee
    Release dateAug 28, 2017
    ISBN9781370562077
    Wolff-Parkinson- White-Syndrome, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions
    Author

    Kenneth Kee

    Medical doctor since 1972.Started Kee Clinic in 1974 at 15 Holland Dr #03-102, relocated to 36 Holland Dr #01-10 in 2009.Did my M.Sc (Health Management ) in 1991 and Ph.D (Healthcare Administration) in 1993.Dr Kenneth Kee is still working as a family doctor at the age of 74However he has reduced his consultation hours to 3 hours in the morning and 2 hours inthe afternoon.He first started writing free blogs on medical disorders seen in the clinic in 2007 on http://kennethkee.blogspot.com.His purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of his patients which is also his dissertation for his Ph.D (Healthcare Administration). He then wrote an autobiography account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.comThis autobiography account “A Family Doctor’s Tale” was combined with his early “A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders” into a new Wordpress Blog “A Family Doctor’s Tale” on http://ken-med.com.From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 1000 eBooks.He apologized for typos and spelling mistakes in his earlier books.He will endeavor to improve the writing in futures.Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.The later books go into more details of medical disorders.He has published 1000 eBooks on various subjects on health, 1 autobiography of his medical journey, another on the autobiography of a Cancer survivor, 2 children stories and one how to study for his nephew and grand-daughter.The purpose of these simple guides is to educate patient on health disorders and not meant as textbooks.He does not do any night duty since 2000 ever since Dr Tan had his second stroke.His clinic is now relocated to the Buona Vista Community Centre.The 2 units of his original clinic are being demolished to make way for a new Shopping Mall.He is now doing some blogging and internet surfing (bulletin boards since the 1980's) startingwith the Apple computer and going to PC.The entire PC is upgraded by himself from XT to the present Pentium duo core.The present Intel i7 CPU is out of reach at the moment because the CPU is still expensive.He is also into DIY changing his own toilet cistern and other electric appliance.His hunger for knowledge has not abated and he is a lifelong learner.The children have all grown up and there are 2 grandchildren who are even more technically advanced than the grandfather where mobile phones are concerned.This book is taken from some of the many articles in his blog (now with 740 posts) A Family Doctor’s Tale.Dr Kee is the author of:"A Family Doctor's Tale""Life Lessons Learned From The Study And Practice Of Medicine""Case Notes From A Family Doctor"

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      Book preview

      Wolff-Parkinson- White-Syndrome, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions - Kenneth Kee

      Wolff-Parkinson-

      White-Syndrome,

      A

      Simple

      Guide

      To

      The Condition,

      Diagnosis,

      Treatment

      And

      Related Conditions

      By

      Dr Kenneth Kee

      M.B.,B.S. (Singapore)

      Ph.D (Healthcare Administration)

      Copyright Kenneth Kee 2017 Smashwords Edition

      Published by Kenneth Kee at Smashwords.com

      Dedication

      This book is dedicated

      To my wife Dorothy

      And my children

      Carolyn, Grace

      And Kelvin

      This book describes Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome, Diagnosis and Treatment and Related Diseases which is seen in some of my patients in my Family Clinic.

      (What The patient Need to Treat Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome)

      This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If the patient would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader.

      If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy.

      Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      Introduction

      I have been writing medical articles for my blog http://kennethkee.blogspot.com (A Simple Guide to Medical Disorder) for the benefit of my patients since 2007.

      My purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of my patients.

      Health Education was also my dissertation for my Ph.D (Healthcare Administration).

      I then wrote an autobiolographical account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.com.

      This autobiolographical account A Family Doctor’s Tale was combined with my early A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders into a new Wordpress Blog A Family Doctor’s Tale on http://kenkee481.wordpress.com.

      From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 800 amazon kindle books and 200 into Smashwords.com eBooks.

      Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.

      For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.

      The later books go into more details of medical disorders.

      The first chapter is always from my earlier blogs which unfortunately tends to have typos and spelling mistakes.

      Since 2013, I have tried to improve my spelling and writing.

      As I tried to bring the patient the latest information about a disorder or illness by reading the latest journals both online and offline, I find that I am learning more and improving on my own medical knowledge in diagnosis and treatment for my patients.

      Just by writing all these simple guides I find that I have learned a lot from your reviews (good or bad), criticism and advice.

      I am sorry for the repetitions in these simple guides as the second chapters onwards have new information as compared to my first chapter taken from my blog.

      I also find repetition definitely help me and maybe some readers to remember the facts in the books more easily.

      I apologize if these repetitions are irritating to some readers.

      Chapter 1

      Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome (WPW)

      When I first heard of WPW as a medical student, I thought it was either something to do with wolves or wrestling. It is actually an abnormal fast rate of the heart.

      What is Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome?

      Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome is a congenital heart disorder in which an additional electrical connection in the heart can cause episodes of rapid heart rate (tachycardia)

      WPW syndrome is one of the most frequent causes of fast heart rate disorders in infants and children.

      Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome is a heart disorder that induces the heart to beat abnormally fast for periods of time.

      It is a relatively frequent disorder, affecting between one and three in every 1,000 people.

      Many WPW cases are diagnosed in otherwise healthy adults aged between 20 and 40.

      Occasionally the extra electrical pathway will not cause any symptoms and may only be detected when an electrocardiogram (ECG) test is done for another disorder.

      In these cases, further tests will be done to find out if treatment is needed.

      It can be frightening for the patient to be told that he or she has a problem with the heart, but WPW syndrome normally is not serious.

      Many people will have no symptoms or only feel occasional, mild episodes of their fast heart rate.

      WPW syndrome is a congenital abnormal disorder which can result in supra-ventricular tachycardia (SVT) that makes use of an atrioventricular (AV) accessory tract.

      The additional pathway may also allow conduction during other supra-ventricular arrhythmias, such as atrial fibrillation or flutter.

      Most patients with ECG findings of pre-excitation do not form tachy-arrhythmias.

      With treatment, the disorder can normally be entirely cured.

      Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome is the most frequent of the ventricular pre-excitation syndromes.

      Others are Lown-Ganong-Levine syndrome and Mahaim-type pre-excitation.

      They are important because of the link with paroxysmal tachycardias that can result in serious cardiovascular complications and sudden death.

      In ECG terms they are essential to detect, because of the risk of misdiagnosis.

      WPW syndrome can occasionally be life-threatening, particularly if it happens together with a type of irregular heartbeat called atrial fibrillation.

      But this is infrequent and treatment can eliminate this risk.

      What are the causes of WPW syndrome?

      Causes

      The cause is an additional electrical connection in the heart.

      The disorder with the heart is present at birth (congenital) even though symptoms may not form until later in life.

      Normally, electrical signals follow a certain pathway through the heart.

      This assists the heart to beat regularly.

      This stops the heart from having extra beats or beats happening too soon.

      In people with WPW syndrome, some of the heart's electrical signals go down an extra connection.

      An extra connection is likely to be congenital, even though it manifests in later years and may seem to be acquired.

      This disorder has been linked with other cardiac disorders, such as Ebstein anomaly.

      A form of the disorder also occurs in families.

      It may be linked with congenital cardiac defects, Ebstein anomaly, mitral valve prolapse, hyper-trophic cardiomyopathy or other cardiomyopathies.

      This may produce a very rapid heart rate called supra-ventricular tachycardia (SVT).

      Most people with WPW syndrome do not normally have any other heart disorders.

      When the heart beats, its muscular walls tighten and squeeze (contract) to force blood out and around the body.

      They then relax, permitting the heart to fill with blood again.

      This is regulated by electrical signals.

      In WPW syndrome, there is an additional electrical pathway in the heart, which permits electrical signals to bypass the normal route and form a short circuit.

      This indicates that the signals travel round and round in a loop, producing events where the heart beats very fast.

      The additional electrical connection is produced by a strand of heart muscle that grows while the unborn baby is forming in the uterus (womb).

      It is not known precisely why this happens.

      It just seems to happen randomly in some babies, even though rare cases have been detected to run in families.

      Types of WPW Syndromes

      WPW syndrome is divided into two types based on the ECG findings:

      1. Type A:

      The delta wave and QRS complex are mainly upright in the pre-cordial leads.

      The dominant R wave in lead V1 may be misdiagnosed as right bundle branch block.

      2. Type B:

      The delta wave

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